Kenu

Discussion about ECL hidden, as we want this to stay on topic. It was not possible to move it, sadly, as this is a news story. (If you would like to discuss the future EU tournaments/leagues, you can take it here: you can take it here)

Yes, delegating is the key. Finding trustworthy people that provide you with high quality work for free and don't let you down is the challenge. Heck, it's not a given even when paying people salary. I'm blessed to have had (and to still have) the honor to work with such talented people that have and continue to contribute to this project, but sadly it's not always easy as just deciding to delegate. This is why the financial side of things is important in the future, as it will not only provide noodles on the table, but help bring stability into the operation. That being said there's definitely room for improvement in my routines and delegating tasks - so you're not wrong. It's just not usually as easy as 1-2-3. And thanks for the kind words!

The ECL 8 Finals between FILADELPHIA (#2) and Written In The Stars (#1) will be played on Friday 1st of March at LanTrek, Tampere, Finland. Who will win this BO7 series and 7 000 € out of the 10 000 € prize pool? Show your support or opinion by voting on the poll! Votes are not public, so you don't have to worry about your friendships when voting. 😅

Ah, yes, wise words. I'll open up my thought process a little to hopefully explain things a bit better (while still vague enough to frustrate some of you 😅) When I say needs a breather and talk about future plans in this case, I'm speaking short term. What in my opinion is the right decision right now. Some criteria that I have to take into account: We've been playing ECL pretty much 5 months straight. I completely agree with what you say about how the pauses should be. The pause before season 8 was much shorter than ideal due to the big steps we were able to take with partnerships and to be able to make the live final. While ECL is our baby and will continue to be the most important of our franchises (along with the NACL that we just announced), we also want to consider other avenues that make the NHLGamer experience fresh and speak to an audience that we're not fully talking to yet. We have to consider our staff's availability and energy levels when making decisions. We have a lot of people listed as ECL staff, but in reality there are a few diamonds that take care of most of the work while a lot of the people are contributing a little or none (which is totally fine as long as the communication is solid). It's hard to explain how much work there really is to make this thing work as well as it is (even with all of its flaws). And in the end I'm the only one working on this full time (currently for free) and it often comes down to me if nobody else is available. 14h+ days are no stranger to me. Not to make things about me, but this then comes down to having to measure my own energy levels. It's no use to the community if I drive myself into a hole and don't have the energy to continue. An example of my esports related projects since the release of NHL 19: IS Cup 3: NHL 19 6vs6 eSM 2018 - Online qualifiers + Live finals in Helsinki IS Cup 3: FIFA 19 1vs1 eSM 2018 - Online qualifiers + Live finals in Seinäjoki IS Cup 3: NHL 19 1vs1 eSM 2018 - Online qualifiers + Local qualifiers in Helsinki + Live finals in Helsinki ECL 7 FIFA 19 Finnish Championship -tournament for Palloliitto - Online qualifiers + Head Admin for finals in Helsinki FIFA 19 Nordics Invitational -tournament for Palloliitto - Head Admin for finals in Helsinki ECL 8 - Online + Live finals in Tampere 1st of March 2019 NACL GCL 3, RCL 3 & RCL 4 (these guys do a very solid job and I don't have to help them too much outside of start of season and playoffs) All of these projects and others not mentioned demand planning, meetings and and preparing before the actual seasons take place. On top of these, time is needed to plan ahead and look at the big picture and develop future plans and partnerships. Not all of our concepts make it to the public eye. We need to think about what the high-end players want vs what the lower end players want vs what the audience wants vs what the partners want vs what a sponsor might want and make a decision that makes the most sense from all points of view. Sometimes one of these groups might get a bigger weight than at others, but it's important to understand that if we want to grow and succeed, we need to take all of these into account and sometimes that might feel like an odd decision if you're only considering your own position as a team or player. What is the right decision today might not be the right one tomorrow, and vice versa. So just because we have done something in one way in the past doesn't mean we can't add or remove from the experience in the future. One thing that some people might find annoying is the lack of information about things well ahead of time. Some thoughts on that: Yes, first off, we want to communicate things as early as possible and are aware that we can do a better job. However, here's some thoughts on why we do things the way we do: I don't like to promise things that I can't keep. Plans change and we need to adapt quickly. But I'd rather have that be internal than announcing something on a time-period that was previously announced as a safe time to take a vacation etc. In some cases, like for example ahead of ECL 8, some of the info wasn't available and wasn't allowed to be released until it would be communicated by us and our partners. Point being: I'd rather communicate something with the correct information from the start than to for example have people expect a higher prize pool and then have to go back on that. Let's say, hypothetically, that I said previously that the ECL 8 prize pool will probably be 10k and then it turned out to be 5k or 7,5k. It would still have been a great thing and an improvement to the past, but it would have been a disappointment as we set the expectations higher ourselves. Just because we don't comment on something or say something, doesn't mean we're not thinking it or not doing it. 😊 I hope that explains a bit better what our/my process of thinking is. We love your feedback and ideas, so keep them coming.

While the Summer Cup isn't our next thing, please feel free to discuss how you would like to see that develop. Also, for those of you who didn't read my reply in the NACL news comments - this is what sparked the discussion: In my opinion, the ECL with it's promotions and relegations needs a breather to stay fresh and interesting for the audience. I understand the will to hit the ECL ice over and over again, but rushing these things isn't a good idea in my opinion. Due to making the schedule work there was practically no down-time between ECL 7 and ECL 8 and we're not even done with the 8th season yet. In order for the ECL to be able to grow, we need the time to do that properly. That being said, there will be plenty of club action before the Summer Cup, where you can join with your ECL team and we'll talk about that more a bit later. I know some of you would like to play season after season after season of ECL non-stop and rest assured your feedback is being taken into consideration. Feel free to send me your thoughts and ideas, but let's keep this comment section about welcoming the guys and gals from North America. Thanks for opening this discussion @Jesus.

In my opinion, the ECL with it's promotions and relegations needs a breather to stay fresh and interesting for the audience. I understand the will to hit the ECL ice over and over again, but rushing these things isn't a good idea in my opinion. Due to making the schedule work there was practically no down-time between ECL 7 and ECL 8 and we're not even done with the 8th season yet. In order for the ECL to be able to grow, we need the time to do that properly. That being said, there will be plenty of club action before the Summer Cup, where you can join with your ECL team and we'll talk about that more a bit later. I know some of you would like to play season after season after season of ECL non-stop and rest assured your feedback is being taken into consideration. Feel free to send me your thoughts and ideas, but let's keep this comment section about welcoming the guys and gals from North America. (If you would like to discuss the future EU tournaments/leagues, you can take it here: you can take it here)

Use this thread to find players for your PS4 team. Some of the things you may want to include: Club name: Looking for: Other Info: Good luck!